2010 April « nuclear-news

Areva and other uranium miners confronted by Niger’s new government

Niger government says will scrap mine deals if no benefit Apr 16, 2010 By Abdoulaye Massalatchi NIAMEY (Reuters) – Niger’s military rulers will examine the country’s mining contracts and invalidate those that do not benefit Niger, it said on Friday.Several contracts, including those with French nuclear energy group Areva and China National Petroleum Corp., were signed under President Mamadou Tandja, who was overthrown by soldiers in the northwest African nation in February.”If a signed convention in the extractive industry is not advantageous for our country, there is no question of accepting it,” said government spokesman Mahaman Laouali Dan Dah.The military group has made anti-corruption a cornerstone of its appeal in the country, one of the world’s poorest despite its uranium mines and oil deposits….

Earlier this month, the government sacked 20 top officials working for state-owned companies, including those involved in representing the country’s uranium and oil interests.

Niger government says will scrap mine deals if no benefit | Top News | Reuters

April 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Niger, politics | antinuclear, AREVA, indigenous, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear wastes, radioactive, reactors, uranium | Leave a comment

Regions and cities acting on Climate Change, side-stepping international agreements

Coalition of the Tired of Waiting: Fighting Climate Change at Ground Level: More Nimble Cities and Regions Eyeing First Mover Advantage, SolveClimate.com, by Ann Danylkiw – Apr 16th, 2010
A pattern is emerging in the geopolitics of climate change this year: Countries are banding together to begin to map out strategies to adapt to and mitigate climate change outside of the UNFCCC process and ahead of a final international climate agreement. Continue reading →

April 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, climate change | climate change, Copenhagen, global warming, renewable energy, solar, wind | Leave a comment

Rupert Murdoch aware of Climate Change dangers, despit Fox News

Murdoch said, “Climate change poses clear, catastrophic threats.”

Murdoch seems as much in the dark about Fox’s Neanderthal stance on the environment as he is about its deep complicity in far-right politics. In a painfully embarrassing public interview with Marvin Kalb last week, Murdoch claimed he had no idea that Fox News has been actively and directly promoting the tea party movement

Fox News Ignores Rupert’s Clean Little Secret, The Nation, by Leslie Savan on 04/16/2010 Continue reading →

April 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | climate change, media, USA | climate change, renewables | Leave a comment

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency concerned about in-situ uranium mining

The federal agency is concerned that injecting wastewater underground could pollute drinking water supplies.

Wyo. OK’ing uranium permits despite EPA concerns, THE HUFFINGTON POST, 16 April 2010, CHEYENNE, Wyo. — The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality is proceeding with permits to allow uranium developers to inject wastewater underground despite federal regulators’ concerns. Continue reading →

April 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, water | antinuclear, nuclear technology, nuclear wastes, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

Police recognise radiation risk, seek warning devices

Delhi Police to buy radiation meters, Prokerala.com 16 April 2010, After having been caught unprepared during the radio-active Cobalt 60 exposure in the capital that affected seven people, the Delhi Police is now procuring sophisticated devices to monitor radiation…………. Continue reading →

April 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | India, safety | antinuclear, nuclear, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

Uranium mine contaminating water in Denver

Defunct uranium mine contaminating groundwater near reservoir, The Denver Post,By Bruce Finley, 04/16/2010 A defunct uranium mine in Jefferson County is contaminating groundwater near a reservoir, but government regulators and mine executives have yet to settle on a plan for cleanup.Uranium concentrations in groundwater 30 feet beneath the brim of the Schwartzwalder Mine exceed the human health standard for uranium by more than 1,000 times, according to state records reviewed Thursday.Unhealthy concentrations also were detected in Ralston Creek, which eventually enters Denver Water’s Ralston Reservoir. The reservoir supplies water to Denver and Arvada.

Defunct uranium mine contaminating groundwater near reservoir – The Denver Post

April 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, water | antinuclear, nuclear, uranium, water | Leave a comment

U.S govt’s nuclear spending contradicts its disarmament rhetoric

the 2011 federal budget for nuclear weapons research and development is likely to be more than $7 billion. If the Obama administration has its way, it could reach $8 billion per year by the end of this decade. This steady and growing investment contradicts the White House’s promising rhetoric of disarmament.

The New Anti-Nuclear Movement, THE HUFFINGTON POST, Frida Berrigan:, 16 April 2010, “………the upcoming Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty Review Conference will take place at the United Nations next month…..According to a Pew Research survey last fall, a little more than a half of the American public believes that “an attack on the United States with a nuclear, biological or chemical weapon is a greater danger now than it was 10 years ago.” Continue reading →

April 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | spinbuster, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons, reactors, uranium | Leave a comment

Local residents in Myapuri tested for radiation contamination

Myapuri residents tested for radiation exposure, LittleAbout , 16 Apr 2010 Thirteen people underwent medical examinations at the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS) in New Delhi Friday to check whether they have been exposed to harmful radiations, an INMAS official told IANS. Continue reading →

April 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | environment, India | AUSTRALIA, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

Australia’s pro-uranium govt deceiving Australian public

Labor Lied About Nuclear Waste, New Matilda, 17 Aopril 2010, By Scott Ludlam The Rudd Government is trying to force a nuclear waste dump on a remote Aboriginal community and is hoping that most voters won’t care or notice, Continue reading →

April 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | AUSTRALIA, secrets,lies and civil liberties | antinuclear, AUSTRALIA, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive | Leave a comment

Pakistan keen to sell nuclear technology to other countries

Pakistan Offers Global Nuclear Fuel Services Again, Planet Ark: 15-Apr-10 Louis Charbonneau Pakistan, the country of the disgraced nuclear scientist who provided Iran, Libya and North Korea with uranium enrichment technology, is once again offering its atomic fuel services to the world. Continue reading →

April 16, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, Pakistan | antinuclear, disarmament, enriched, nuclear spin, nuclear technology, nuclear weapons, plutonium, reprocessing, uranium | Leave a comment

Continued anxiety over radioactive contamination at Mayapuri, India

NDMA warns soil at Mayapuri could be contaminated, The Times of India, Dwaipayan Ghosh, TNN, Apr 16, 2010, Even as experts from BARC claimed that no “new sources” of radioactive cobalt-60 were found in the market on Thursday, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) sent out a note of caution saying that the soil has been “contaminated” at various locations……. “Those who are admitted at hospitals are still not fit enough to answer our questions,” said the DCP. NDMA warns soil at Mayapuri could be contaminated – Delhi – City – The Times of India

April 16, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | India, safety | antinuclear, nuclear, radioactive | Leave a comment

Doubts on safety of nuclear reactor close to Lake Erie

Problems at the Davis-Besse nuclear reactor near Toledo are worse than expected, cleveland.com, By John Funk, The Plain DealerApril 15, 2010, As many as 16 critical parts in the Davis-Besse reactor lid are cracked or flawed, and the problem could get worse.Engineers expect to find additional problems when they conduct a third round of high-tech inspections in the coming weeks. Continue reading →

April 16, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, radioactive, reactor | Leave a comment

Closure of Russia’s last plutonium nuclear reactor

Russia shuts down last plutonium reactor ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) 16 April 2010, Russia has shut down its last weapons-grade plutonium reactor, in line with a pledge made at a nuclear security summit in Washington this week, officials said. Continue reading →

April 16, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Russia, technology | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear spin, nuclear technology, nuclear wastes, nuclear weapons, plutonium | Leave a comment

India’s anger at Pakistan’s production of nuclear technology

India to fight Pak agenda at disarmament conference, The Times of India, Sachin Parashar, TNN, Apr 16, 2010, NEW DELHI: With the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon desperately seeking to revive the Conference on Disarmament (CD) by calling for a meet on fissile material cut-off in September, India is preparing for a showdown with Pakistan which has singlehandedly managed to block any forward movement in CD citing its security concerns vis-a-vis India. Continue reading →

April 16, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Pakistan, politics international | antinuclear, enriched, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear weapons | Leave a comment

Concerns over Pakistan’s nuclear security now ‘quashed’?

Pak’s participation in nuclear security summit legitimises its nuke programme – Gilani, Oneindia News , Washington, Apr.15 (ANI): Describing his Washington visit as ‘successful’, Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has said that Islamabad’s participation in the just concluded two-day nuclear security summit has ‘boosted the legitimacy of the country’s nuclear programme.’
Interacting with media persons after the concluding session of the important summit, Gilani said the international community’s concerns over the safety of Pakistan’s nuclear establishments were ‘effectively quashed’ during the conference, which was attended by leaders of 47 countries.
Kerry assured Gilani of the US congressional leadership’s support in providing Pakistan greater access to American markets, and meeting its defence requirements. Pak’s participation in nuclear security summit legitimises its nuke programme:Gilani – Oneindia News